Tainted Angel
by Lillith Gray
Summary: In a world where the angels are nearly extinct and the Nephilim have taken over heaven, a synthetic angel named "Mayu" is created by the enigmatic figure Mother Matilde. What will happen when Mayu is handed over to Hell and forced to marry one of the five demon princes in exchange for her people's peace?
1. Caged Baby Dragon

_(Author's Notes)_

_Hi guys! I'm here with a new story!_

_First off, I feel I have to warn you all that this story may be upped to an M rating in the coming chapters, for gore. I also feel I should say that, at its core, this is a reverse harem style fic, but it will also have a lot of horror elements, yay! But anyways, this story is a major experiment for me, so we'll see how it goes. But don't worry, I still fully plan to finish "I'm Your Devil!". I just needed a break from it since I'm really stuck on the latest chapter. Not entirely sure how far I'll get on this one, but if you guys like it I may continue it passed the next few chapters. ;)_

_So, the female protagonist for this story is Mayu again. I actually considered a few different options but she just seemed to fit, haha. The boys for this one will be Kaito, Yuma, Len, Luki, and Mikuo! Might switch Len out for Oliver, but we'll see.  
_

_Anyways, hope you enjoy!_

* * *

The rustle of her white dress against her skin, the steady rhythm of light breaths, and the feeling of the leathery pages betwixt her fingers as her eyes scanned and memorized each word. These were all things that Mayu knew very well and these were all things that she was very familiar with, and yet it always seemed like she knew so very little. So, she read more to quench her thirst. In fact, that's all she did — all day every day, she read. For a hundred years she had read like this, her attention never fading as she turned page after page, reading the same books over and over again. _They were all she had._

She shifted slightly on her white arm chair, feeling thoughtful as she turned another page. Come to think of it, she thought pointedly, she had never seen her reflection before. This was because no mirrors were available to her here, they were unnecessary, she supposed. However, Mayu assumed that like most angels she was at least moderately beautiful and tall. She had never heard her own voice, either, though. Thinking about it made her slightly weary and she couldn't help scratching idly at the ribbon tied around the lower portion of her face, wishing she could untie the bow and spit out her gag. She knew, however, that this was not only ill advised but completely impossible, as there were certain preventative measures taken. She had learned that the hard way when she was younger. And besides that, _Mother Matilde knows best_.

Her books, after all, had taught her many things about Mother Matilde and her Nephilim brethren. According to her beloved books, Mother Matilde had united the Nephilim children against the armies of Hell all those years ago, after the angels had become extinct from the onslaught of the demons. Mother Matilde had synthetically created her, a pure angel, and given her the name "Mayu". She also knew that this stark white room she called home was nothing more than a closed space in Mother Matilde's heaven, where she was being kept safe until the time that her people needed her. She knew that she was the only angel left, but that didn't matter much to Mayu. All that mattered was that the Nephilim were righteous and therefore had her allegiance. Mayu would fight with them. That's what the books had taught her, and that's all she knew.

Tossing the last few words around in her mind, Mayu carefully closed the book and set it on the table beside her. Shifting her emotionless eyes over the white washed walls and carpet that twinkled like snow, her gaze fell upon the simple bed lying inconspicuously in the far corner of the room. She wondered vaguely if she should sleep. Being an angel, things like food and sleep were unnecessary to her, however she had learned that naps helped pass the time, especially since there were no windows in her room nor any other way to tell time. Each move was meticulously timed as she got up from the chair and slowly came over to the bed, unfolding the carefully made sheets and inserting herself between them. She closed her eyes and sleep came to her immediately, as it always did. Mayu always found it slightly disappointing that she never dreamed.

When Mayu's eyes flew open several hours later, she found that the light reflecting off her pale ceiling seemed somehow brighter than before. This was very strange indeed, as Mayu had repeated this ritual of unnecessary slumber many times in her hundred years of life, and not a single time had there been any change or abnormality. Feeling neither excitement nor worry, she sat up and glanced about the room. Everything seemed to be in place; the armchair sat quietly against the wall, her book still placed on the carved table beside it. The carpet, walls, and wainscoting were all still the same bright white. The permanently lit chandelier still hung overhead, its candlelight flickering but bright, and her books sat silently on their shelves.

However, when Mayu's gaze fell upon a certain section of the wall on the far left side of the room, she found the change. Strangely, a small square seemed to be missing in the wall. The hole was no more than two feet tall, and all that could be seen through it was bright, unfiltered light. Mayu cocked her head to the side, staring blatantly. For a moment she puzzled over this new appearance, several theories floating around in her mind. Finally, deciding this must be a calling of some sort she got up from the bed, carefully arranged the bedding, and calmly walked over to the square of light. Without a moment's hesitation she dropped to her knees and crawled through the aperture. For a moment she could see nothing, but her eyes quickly adjusted and she found herself on all fours in an extravagant and brightly lit hallway. Intricate tapestries depicting Mother Matilde and her followers hung on the walls, along with golden cases whose shelves were lined with various expensive looking trinkets. Mayu swiftly got to her feet, eyes scanning her surroundings carefully. She took a few steps forward, and seeing nothing particularly negative making itself known, she strode down the hall, careful to keep her wits about her. Was this the day she had been waiting for? Was she at last needed by her creator?

It seemed like hours passed as she walked on with the same scenery repeating over and over again. When at last the end was in sight, Mayu was greeted with a massive, golden door that was so heavily filigreed that she wondered if she was looking at the very gates to heaven. For a moment, she simply stared at the elaborate, lion shaped door knocker that protruded from its front. Making her decision, however, she raised a small hand and pulled back the knocker, listening carefully as the resulting sharp sound rung out. Immediately, the door swung open and a gust of wind blew outward, causing Mayu to raise a hand to shelter herself as her hair and dress rustled about.

Once the wind had died down, Mayu lowered her arm and was greeted by a scene like nothing she had ever seen before. A large, round room with impossibly tall ceilings was spread out before her. On the ceiling had been painted a scenery of angels and cherubs relaxing in the clouds, their expressions hard to read. Their faces looked so real that Mayu almost expected to see their wings shifting as they gazed at one another. The rest of the room was covered in gold and red decorations, elaborate carvings, and dainty filigree. Lining the outer walls sat five intensely extravagant arm chairs, the central one being the most delicate and beautiful. Each of the outer chairs were occupied by tall, black hooded figures draped in velvet robes, and in the central one sat a woman Mayu instinctively knew was Mother Matilde. Mayu had seen many pictures of her in her books, and although she had most certainly aged, her elegance and prettiness was apparent. She was clothed in a red and gold court gown that put Mayu's simple white dress to shame. Mayu could only stare, expressionless as the woman smiled down at her. She could hear quite a ruckus in the room as the advisers whispered to one another, though she could not make out their words. Without another thought, Mayu dipped into a low curtsy, though she was unable to speak.

"Ah, my precious Mayu, it is wonderful that we should meet our savior!"

* * *

Mayu stared at the mirror, transfixed as she sat before the dressing table. Two Nephilim women who's clothes indicated they were maids fussed about her hair and clothes as she stared blankly. Mayu was surprised by the smallness of her body when compared to the others she had seen that day, although she knew her body should have been mature at this point in her life. She found that her eyes, though large, were a bright golden color that seemed strange to her. Her skin was a milky white, and her pale hair fell in fluffy curls down passed her knees, the hue varying at the ends to create a rainbow effect. What she found the most odd, though, was her expression. It seemed so… _lifeless_. Not at all like the angels in her books. And yet, it never changed, not even slightly as she watched.

At Mother Matilde's (who was currently seated behind them, watching intently) command, the maids had dressed her up in an elaborate tea-length empire waist dress with several layers of glittery ruffles at the bottom. Mayu found herself very confused as one maid began to braid her hair and the other placed a large, white flower headdress on top of her head. Why were they so concerned with her appearance? Wasn't she going into battle? She wished fervently that they would remove her gag so that she could question Mother Matilde. She had waited so long for this day, and yet everything seemed so unlike what she had imagined. Once they were satisfied, the maids had Mayu stand and approach Mother Matilde. The older woman looked her over carefully, and seeming satisfied dismissed the two maids, who quickly made their exit out into the hallway beyond the only door in the room. Mother Matilde eyed Mayu carefully over a cup of tea, her short brown hair curling close to her cheeks.

"Ah, now you look the part, dear!" She said, smiling. Mayu could only stare in response.

"You know, I feel a bit nostalgic. It's finally time for you to unite us…" She continued, taking another sip of her tea. Mayu cocked her head to the side, her only way of questioning. Unite who? Wasn't she supposed to fight the demons?

"Oh? You are confused? Now why is that… I assumed that you could put two and two together." Mother Matilde mused, setting down her teacup. She then removed herself from her chair and made her way to the door, placing her hand on the knob as Mayu's confusion grew.

"Fortunately for you, there are several candidates, so I'm going to let you choose the one you like the best. You'll have a year to make your decision." As she spoke, the doorknob in her grip began to glow red as if heated. Slowly, she turned the knob over and began to open the door. The brightly lit hallway had been replaced by a wall of inky black darkness that even Mayu's gaze could not penetrate. Mayu stared blankly, her expression unwavering but her eyes asking a million questions. The woman before her chuckled.

"Well, go on. Find a prince to marry! Although… they're all a bunch _demons_ so I don't envy you." She said, smirking. Turning her gaze to the doorway, Mayu attempted to make sense of the situation, but nothing seemed to add up. What was she talking about? This wasn't what she expected at all.

But, somehow, one thought kept repeating in her mind.

_Mother Matilde knows best._

And so, with one last look at her creator, Mayu stepped into the shadows, watching uninterestedly as they devoured her body and left her in darkness.


	2. Red Punishment

_(Author's Notes)_

_Welcome to chapter two! Two of the five boys are introduced in this chapter; Kaito and Len! They're pretty evil now, but don't worry they'll get better later on haha! And, you may have noticed Mayu isn't really yandere so far, but I've planned it to be a gradual thing in this story.  
_

_Also a quick warning, this chapter has some self harm in it, so don't read this if that bothers you. ^^_

* * *

Kaito sat, long legs crossed and a finger tapping impatiently on the chair's armrest as he stared at the large, double doors before him. He was surrounded by complete darkness, with shadows bathing the Gothic decor and licking at his feet. Here, for now, he was master and this was his kingdom. However, this did not aid with his current displeasures. By his estimation, he had been waiting in this stuffy parlor for fifteen minutes now, and that was most certainly fifteen minutes _too long_. Angel or no angel, Kaito Shion waited for no one. Growing rather annoyed, he toyed with a few strands of his dark blue hair as his frown grew deeper. Normally, he would have given up on something so trivial as greeting a guest (as the others had) and left by now, but he had already decided that this "angel" everyone was so worked up about _belonged to him_. And when Kaito set his mind to something, he wasn't one to let it alone.

Kaito was brought from his thoughts when the doors suddenly flew open on creaky hinges. Light flooded into the room, and he could just make out the silhouette of a small girl standing in the doorway. She stepped inside daintily, and the door was slammed shut and locked behind her with a certain finality. Shadows now once again filling the space between them, Kaito could see her clearly. She appeared to be about five feet tall, with long pale hair that had been pulled into a neat braid, the ends of which varied in color. She was very slender and almost child-like, though he knew her to be in her late teens by human standards. What struck him most, however, was her face. Her eyes were large and seemed to glitter in the darkness, but the position of her thin brows presented no distinct emotion. The bottom of her face had been covered with a long pink ribbon; he had been told that this concealed a gag that was for his own safety. Ha! How droll, he thought. Strangely, though, her overall expression was entirely unreadable, and Kaito couldn't help but smirk at her innocent aura. This was going to be fun.

She looked around blearily, clearly blinded by the darkness. Still, she seemed like a china doll in that neither did she look panicked nor particularly interested in her predicament. Suddenly, an idea came to him. She clearly couldn't see him, so Kaito reached a hand to the golden letter opener lying quietly on the desk beside him, and with a carelessly accurate flick of his wrist he sent it catapulting in the angel's direction. The object hit its mark and sunk straight through her chest, pinning her to the wooden door behind her with a sickening squelch. However, she didn't so much as flinch and only stared down dumbly at the protruding letter opener for a few strange moments. A small hand then slowly reached up and pulled the weapon from her chest, letting it slip from her fingers and clatter to the floor rather unceremoniously. There was now a small rip in her white dress, but not so much as a drop of blood emerged from her chest. Her dead eyes then closed in on his position, clearly having followed the trajectory of his makeshift weapon. She was incapable of speech so she simply stared. Kaito chuckled, his deep voice echoing throughout the room as his eyes danced with mirth. With a simple snap of his fingers the quietly swinging chandelier overhead lit up with fire, the lit wicks dancing like ghosts as they penetrated the shadows. The room was then bathed in a flickering orange glow, although small vestiges of shadows remained in pockets around the room. Kaito placed a hand under his chin as he waited for her eyes to scan over him, cataloging every detail of his visage.

"So you really are an angel." He said, watching her with a predatory gleam. To his annoyance, he received nothing more than a few blinks from the girl as she stood in the parlor. Giving an aggravated huff, Kaito got to his feet and strutted up to her, looking more like a cocky prince than a demon. He paused a few steps before her.

"Your room's this way, Mayu." He said haughtily, jabbing a finger in the direction of the upper east wing, accessible by the winding stair case on the other side of the room. Without another word, he took off in that direction, his pace deliberately quickened. Mayu watched him for a moment before deciding she had no choice and hurried after him. It was very difficult for the small girl to keep up with him, and more than once she tripped and stumbled. She never paused nor attempted to make him slow down, however, and remained stoic the entire time. The whole "not speaking" thing was really grating on Kaito's nerves at that point though, and thankfully he knew _exactly_ what to do about that. Yuma had warned him not to do it, but when did that ever stop him? Just the very thought excited him.

They made it up the stairs and through several hallways on the upper level before they came to one of the few windows in the mansion. Mayu paused, staring blatantly. Beyond the window lay nothing but an endless sea of licking, seething flames that burned bright and hot. Placing a hand on the window, she could feel the scorching heat thrumming against her fingers. Kaito slowed his pace but didn't bother stopping.

"Welcome to Hell, sweetheart."

It wasn't long before the pair made it to the stark white door that led to Mayu's room. Kaito opened the door and she walked inside. Mayu found the decadence of the room peculiar — it was huge, with a large canopy bed at one end that had shimmery white hangings. The carpet was plush and thick, while the walls were heavily adorned with beautiful paintings of Mayu's angelic ancestors. She found it strange that such things could be found in hell, and shivered unintentionally. Candles flickered throughout the room, and Mayu found herself feeling slightly relieved that there were no windows in her new home. She noticed with dissatisfaction, however, that there was not a single book to be found in the spacious room. Turning her attention to the paintings, she walked up to the largest one, her expression eerily calm. She raised a finger and traced the lines around the angel's face, remarking at the tall, golden haired figure. The eyes were so blue and bright that Mayu could almost imagine them blinking. She realized then with a bit of melancholy that she was quite different than her ancestors. So lost in her reverie was she, that she failed to notice Kaito as he crept up behind her. The demon forcefully pulled her from her reverie by grabbing the bow on the back of her neck and applying pressure until she was forced a few steps backwards and their bodies collided. He wrapped a hand around her waist and pinned her in place. As soon as his skin touched hers, Mayu could feel a penetrating, acidic sort of burning where their skin brushed together. A sharp pressure built in her temples, her head screaming to get away as she felt his evil stain her. With his spare hand, Kaito plucked at the ribbon tied around her face, his breath tickling the nape of her neck as he muttered some kind of incantation Mayu didn't recognize. Finally, as he pulled the ribbon free of itself, it dissolved into pieces in his fingers. Coughing and spluttering, Mayu spit out the gag, a million different sensations burning into her all at once. She could feel Kaito smirk into her shoulder.

"From here on out, angel, you are mine to do with as I please. I will taint you until not a speck of your grace is left." He whispered into her ear. Mayu could feel her whole body trembling as she tried to form words, her expression wavering.

"And in the end, you will choose me."

"GET… OUT!" She finally shrieked, her voice high and unsteady. In a painful smattering of negative emotions a pair of snow white wings emerged out from under her skin. An explosion of white feathers filled the room, and the whole house seemed to shutter at her words. The moment the utterance left her lips, Kaito was catapulted out of the room by an unseen force. He hit the wall with a thud, and before he could get up, Mayu frantically slammed the door shut and turned the lock over.

* * *

Mayu sat shivering on the edge of her new bed, the initial heat of Kaito's touch having given way to a numbing chill. Pure white feathers lay scattered around the room, and her new found pair of wings were held close to her body, sheltering her from outside stimuli. She exhaled heavily, allowing her body to fall back onto the plush bed, her arms wrapped around her upper torso. So many things had happened that day, and so quickly, that Mayu could hardly believe that only a few hours ago she was seated safely in her familiar room, book in hand. Her experience with Kaito had caused something very strange and fleeting in her — _emotion_. For the first time in her life she had truly _felt_… but what exactly was it that she had felt? She wasn't sure what to call it, but she knew it had been unpleasant. She still remembered that Mother Matilde had told her she was to "marry" a demon… but what did that even mean? Mayu's books had taught her little about marriage. Her whole situation was entirely confusing and Mayu didn't know what to think. What could be the reason for this? Either way, she was determined not to give in to this demon.

It had been several hours since she'd seen Kaito, but still she felt his chill. Mayu's mind began to wander though, and she started to think that it might be a good idea to explore her new prison a bit. She knew the other "Princes" must be roaming around out there, and without knowing how to protect herself against them, she was a little weary. But, then, Mayu did not know fear very well and thus her decision was made. She got to her feet and was slightly startled when her wings erupted into a flurry of shimmering light. It dispersed quickly and Mayu was left back in her original state, save for her meddling chill. She wasn't immediately worried though, as she had read that her wings would come and go according to her emotions, if she had any. That was the first time they had ever appeared for Mayu though, and she had to admit they felt more than a little comforting.

A few moments later Mayu was cautiously opening the white door and slowly peeking her head out into the hallway. Outside the dim hall was quiet and still, and Mayu noticed that Kaito had clearly made his leave. And so she traipsed out into the hall and quietly began her journey. Mayu wandered through the halls for more than an hour, never stopping nor running into anyone, demon or otherwise. Mayu memorized every route that she took and began creating a mental map of the place as she went. She stayed to the second floor, and discovered a small music room filled with all sorts of strange instruments she had never heard of before. Other than that she found mostly locked doors and blocked off hallways.

About to give up and head back to her room, Mayu took one more turn down a rather narrow, almost dilapidated hallway. It was very dark, and Mayu remained cautious with her steps, her golden eyes groping the darkness. Finally, at the end of the hall, Mayu discovered an open door. The tiny black door was ajar just slightly, and an eerie purple light spilled out into the hallway from the aperture. Expressionless, Mayu approached the door and opened it fully, relieved the hinges were quiet. She took a step inside the dark room, and was quite inwardly delighted by it's contents. Illuminated only by a vague colored light seeping from the far depths of the room, Mayu could see rows upon rows of book-lined shelves crammed into the surprisingly large room. She looked quite calm as she flitted around the room, pulling books from various places and scanning the pages, authors, and titles, but she couldn't deny the sparkle in her eyes. She was astonished by the fact that she recognized not a single one of them, and that the subject matter seemed so diverse. And not only that, but none of them so much as mentioned Mother Matilde. They all appeared to be works of fiction.

Several books tucked beneath her arms, Mayu ventured further into the room towards the strange purple light. She stopped several times to gander at books that caught her interest, but as she got closer she began to notice that the silence was broken. There was some sort of low scraping sound she was able to hear in clusters, as it died down in between bouts of strength. Curious, Mayu pressed on. Eventually, she came to the edge of the room, and before her stood a tall panel of stained glass that seemed to be religious in some form, but Mayu recognized none of the characters. As her eyes traveled downwards, she realized she was not alone and quickly withdrew behind the nearest shelf. Peeking over the bookcase, she could see the young man sitting on the wide window sill, purple light illuminating his pale skin. He looked to be only a little taller than Mayu, with golden blonde hair that had been tied into a short pony tail. His eyes were a bright, oceanic blue and seemed somehow sleepy and subdued. She thought his features looked almost angelic, until, that is, her eyes fell upon his hands. In his right hand he held a dagger, who's hilt was encrusted with several rubies and the snarling maw of a toothy dragon. Beneath the knife was his left arm, a large gash torn into it, revealing the flesh, bone, and veins beneath. Every so often he brought the knife down and plunged it into his arm, watching idly as it grated against the bright bone within. Black blood covered the expensive looking sleeve of his jacket. It cloaked his arms and dripped down onto his pant's leg. Mayu watched vacantly as he brought the knife to his face, a pink tongue emerging from betwixt two lips to taste the black liquid dripping from his knife.

It was then that Mayu shifted her weight and her grip on the books in her left arm slipped. Several tomes tumbled to the ground in a in a loud clattering mess. Mayu looked down at the books, feeling more than a little uneasy — the last thing she wanted was to be touched by a demon again. These things were clearly dangerous, but at the same time Mayu didn't feel particularly panicked. It wasn't in her nature. She looked up and found that the creature in question was eying her tiredly. He yawned and got to his feet, the knife falling to the floor as the flesh on his wounded arm began to knit back together.

"You must be the angel…?" His voice was light, but somehow his presence seemed heavy. Mayu only nodded as he approached, her posture perfect as she stared at him. He paused about a foot before her, his eyes roving her body up and down. Mayu watched him carefully, and soon spoke up.

"You shouldn't turn your knife against yourself." She said plainly, her tone completely flat. She hadn't really been that upset by his display, and her voice surprised her a little, but she remembered her books had taught her about this type of thing. They had told her that if you were in high standing, it was ill advised to harm yourself unless in complete privacy, only seen as prudent in public if it was a form of punishment for oneself in the name of Mother Matilde. This demon was a "Prince" right? So she felt it her duty to correct him. The blonde looked curious.

"Why not?"

"My books say so." She said, and at her words the demon burst out laughing, a rather melodious sound that filled the room with a strange presence.

"Was something funny?" Mayu asked, looking concerned. He smirked at her and for a few moments they both fell silent.

"Say… You've got a lot of my books there."

"Yours?"

"Yes. I brought them all here from my personal collections back home." He said, picking up the books that had fallen at her feet.

"It's quite an impressive collection." Mayu commented, chancing a fond look at the rather large red one still in her hand. For a moment he looked contemplative.

"Y'know, if you want to borrow so many, you'll have to give me something in exchange." He said finally, looking gravely serious.

"That seems fair. What would you like?" She responded with, suddenly marveling at the fact that she was carrying on a real conversation for the first time in her life. The demon looked thoughtful, tapping a long finger against his chin.

"I would like… a kiss." He spoke after a pause, smiling wryly. Mayu cocked her head to the side.

"What's that? Can I get one here?" She asked, genuinely bewildered. He yawned, looking annoyed at her ignorance.

"It's simple. All you have to do is touch your lips to mine." He explained, as though he were speaking to a child. Mayu took a step back, suspicion written across her pretty face.

"Why would you want that? And won't touching you hurt?" She asked wearily, beginning to feel uneasy. She wondered if she would be able to use her voice to defend herself again, she honestly had no clue how she had done it before.

"Don't be dense, a kiss is _different_. You won't feel a thing." He promised, bowing low in a very exaggerated fashion. Mayu seemed relieved, far too trusting for her own good.

"Well… maybe if you'll allow me to borrow books whenever I like?" She bartered, eying him carefully. She really had no idea what his request was all about, but it seemed harmless enough to her.

"Deal." He agreed, punctuating his word with a yawn. Slowly, Mayu approached him as he leant forward and closed his eyes, long lashes brushing together. Mayu came as close to him as her body could bare, her long dress brushing against his blood stained pants. She leaned forward, but hesitated as her lips hovered over his. She marveled at their nearness, she could see every detail of his face and feel his otherworldly breath against her skin. It seemed so strange to her to feel this closeness.

Irritated by her indecision, the demon closed the space between them with a suddenness that startled Mayu. As soon as their lips touched, a prickling sensation spread out from her lips to her toes. As he pressed further against her, the sensation evolved into a rippling, intense pain that coursed through her whole body in waves of excruciating sensation. Panicking, she tried to step away from him, but he held her in place. Mayu attempted to use her words but found herself unable to speak.

When finally he released her, the frail girl fell to her knees, her shaking legs unable to sustain her own weight. She coughed and hacked, trying to rid herself of his rotten taste. Her mind began to feel fuzzy as he grinned down at her, eyes glowing ominously. A throaty laughter filled her ears as pain pulsed through her head, and she could only watch as he turned his back to her and began walking away. As he left, the demon tossed one of the books he had picked up in her direction, and she cried out when the heavy tome collided with her back and caused her to fall over. It wasn't long before everything went black and she felt her body crumple beneath her.


	3. Dream Demon

_(Author's Notes)_

_Hello again! Chapter three is finally finished, yaaay! So anyways, in this chapter the remaining characters are introduced. First up is Gumi, who is not really a part of the reverse harem or anything, but instead serves as a sort of guide for Mayu. That said, I decided to write Gumi a bit differently. I was very inspired by the song "First Love Academy * School of True Love" to say the least haha! So anyways, basically I'm leaving Gumi's gender for this story completely up to the reader! I hope you enjoy, and please let me know what you think! :3_

_P.S. Thank you so much Reign (Absolute Despair Girl) for being my beta! It really helps me to improve!_

* * *

When Mayu next became aware, she could feel little droplets of water pattering against her skin. At first, the strange new sensation had startled her, but after a few minutes, she relaxed, and the steady symphony comforted her. Her now drenched white dress clinging to her body, Mayu soon began to open her eyes, and she was greeted by a scene like nothing she had ever seen before.

Mayu was seated in the middle of a cobbled platform of sorts that appeared, from the view, to be situated on the side of a mountain. All around her grew a plethora of different fauna; the dense green plants crawling up the rocky face of the mountain around her. The ground beneath her was wet and cold to the touch, while the sky above her was grey and dreary. There seemed to be a light mist that had settled over the scene, and Mayu was left shivering from the chill. Slowly, as to avoid slipping, she got to her feet, and her eyes traced the path that wound around the side of the mountain.

Mayu found herself feeling very confused as she began to follow the path, beckoned by a strange feeling thrumming against her chest. Her clothes stuck to her skin uncomfortably, and her bare feet slipped several times on the wet cobbled path, but she still pressed on. It was about a ten minute hike before Mayu came to a sort of pavilion. It was a wooden structure that had been painted a pale blue, with a roof covered in gray shingles. Grateful for some shelter from the rain, Mayu traipsed up the steps and underneath the roofed area. She was immediately filled with an inward sense of awe as her pale eyes took in the view around the pavilion; neighboring mountains poked out of a blanket of fog, green and luscious. The clouds stood out bold and powerful against the few glittering rays of sunlight that managed to make their way through the mist. The rain whispered softly as it fell to the ground below, and Mayu could only stare listlessly as her wet hair was picked up by a gentle breeze.

"Your dreams are very beautiful!" A voice suddenly spoke from her left, and Mayu immediately turned to face the sound. Beside her stood a person grinning down at her with excitement. The figure was tall and flat chested like a man but had the large, bright eyes and narrow shoulders of a woman. The hair of this stranger was a vibrant green and quite short, with two longer pieces in the front to frame the face. The stranger was dressed quite sharply with a crisp white business shirt, a black vest with gold detailing, and puffy black pants that stopped just beneath the knee. Mayu found that the voice was just as nondescript gender-wise as the appearance. She felt curious but held her tongue.

The stranger then took her hand up and placed a light kiss on its back. She was quite relieved to find that no pain resulted from the touch. So this person wasn't a demon, and this clearly wasn't Hell, so what was going on exactly?

"My name is Gumi! It's a pleasure to meet you at last, Mayu!"

"What are you?" Mayu asked, her head cocked to the side slightly, though her face remained blank. Was this person a nephilim? She was very confused.

"For now, it's best not to say, but I've come to you for a trade of sorts! Will you hear me out, dear?" Gumi asked. The stranger seemed quite eager and their eyes glimmered with anticipation. Mayu thought for a moment, her latest experience had taught her to give a little more consideration to her deals with others.

"… What do you propose?" She asked at last. Gumi turned and stared out at the mountain scenery, a more subdued smile on their lips.

"All I need is information, and I can offer the same."

"Oh?" Mayu commented, coming up beside the person and leaning against the railing, her emotionless eyes staring out into the distance. They gazed at the same scenery, and yet somehow they saw something completely different in it.

"You tell me what's happening to you in hell, and I'll tell you everything I know about these 'princes' you're living with." Gumi offered, turning to her with warmth. Mayu mulled it over for a few silent moments, her eyes somewhat pensive.

On the one hand, she knew not if she could trust this person or if they were an enemy to Mother Matilde, but on the other hand she could use any advantage against these creatures that she could get. Finally, she simply nodded once, kurt and to the point. That was enough, though, for Gumi to pump a fist into the air triumphantly.

"Awesome! So what happened when you first arrived?"

Mayu then went on to explain about how she had met Kaito, and the things he had said and done to her after he had brought her to her new room. Her descriptions were very discreet and lacked detail. Her expression remained completely bland as she mentioned only the most important things about her experiences. Gumi looked quite disgusted when she had finished.

"I'm very sorry you're having to deal with this, Mayu. But, the man you met is Kaito Shion. His father is the current reigning king of hell, making him the sole heir. He's known for being very prideful and ruthless. I'm honestly surprised he even came out for your hand. He's usually not into politics." Gumi explained, watching Mayu closely. Mayu stared at a cloud she thought looked particularly like a face, her thoughts wandering to Kaito and the things he had told her.

"And what happened next?" Gumi pressed, and Mayu was driven from her reverie. She then told Gumi about the blonde she had met in the library, though she didn't know his name. When Mayu told her about the kiss, Gumi sighed exasperatedly.

"Meiko obviously didn't teach you much, sheesh." Gumi mumbled, and Mayu looked very confused at her slip, so Gumi quickly continued.

"Anyways, from the description you gave, I think this smart ass is Len Kagamine. He's Kaito's cousin, his Mom being the Shion head's sister. The Kagamines often quarrel with the Shions, and the Kagamines are actively pursuing the throne. All I know about Len personally is that he's known for being twisted, as I'm sure you've realized." Gumi said, looking thoughtful. Mayu nodded and looked back to Gumi.

"Is there anything else? Our time is running out." Gumi said, their voice suddenly sounding distant.

"After that I ended up here—"

"Then we'll have to end it. It was nice meeting you, Mayu!" Gumi exclaimed, smiling.

"Wait, I still have questions…" Mayu protested, but moments later, she found her eyes flying open, only to realize she was back in the depths of hell.

* * *

Yuma stared out the window, a melancholic look spread across his handsome features. He watched as the flames flickered and hissed at the glass, their bright fury weaving strange after images into his eyes. It saddened him to think of the past as his mind stumbled through various memories; his sister's smiling face and the bright days he used to take for granted in heaven. That seemed like so long ago, like a distant, sepia colored dream that sometimes felt like it had never even happened in the first place. Hell was his only reality now.

He sighed and glanced back at the girl lying in his bed. She looked so peaceful, her little hands clasping at the comforter and her long braid curled around her body. Physically, she seemed so different from her ancestors — from _him_. She was tiny and fragile looking, without a hint of that mature elegance he so fondly remembered. Quickly, and with more than a little apprehension, he stole a look at the other occupant of the room. Kaito lay on the other oversized bed in the room, his midnight blue hair a mess and the sheets tangled around his slim body. Yuma really hated having to share a room with the guy, but unfortunately it was necessary for their current situation. He really did hope though that Mayu would come to before Kaito awoke, so that he could get her out of here without any drama. Kaito had insisted on bringing her here when he had found her collapsed in the library earlier that afternoon. The blue haired devil was initially smirking like an idiot when he'd shown up with the angel in his arms, but after a much deserved scolding from Yuma, and the realization that there wasn't much fun to be had when the girl was unconscious, he had passed out in his bed from boredom. Yuma would have brought the poor girl back to her room himself, but he couldn't afford being seen by the others. So the waiting game had begun.

When Yuma returned his golden eyes to Mayu, he realized that suddenly she was sitting up, rubbing her large eyes and glancing blearily around the room. He could feel his heart rate pick up a bit when their eyes met; it had been so very long since he'd locked eyes with an angel. He smiled warmly at her, his eyes reflecting a certain fondness. Her lips parted slightly, but the dead look in her golden eyes caused a twinge of sadness to spark in his heart. He assumed that deadness came from the fact that she was born of a power hungry mother, and never knew the love of their father. By his estimate, she probably knew next to nothing about the world. He really pitied her.

"I'm glad to see you're awake, Mayu. How are you feeling?" He asked gently, coming closer and taking a seat at the far end of the large bed. For a moment, she simply stared at him blankly.

"I feel fine… but where am I? I remember I was in the library… and then the dream…" She spoke almost hesitantly, her voice surprisingly calm. It was so high and gentle though, that he couldn't help thinking she was rather adorable. He quickly reprimanded himself, though. It was highly inappropriate.

"You're in Kaito and my room. He found you collapsed earlier… I'm guessing it was Len?" He asked, jabbing a finger at the sleeping Kaito at the other end of the room. Her expression remained completely unchanged as she stared at him.

"And you are?" She asked, cocking her head to the side, her bangs falling over her face.

"Ah! Where are my manners? I'm Yuma." He introduced, looking a little apologetic. There was a long silence that stretched between the two, Mayu's unblinking eyes watching him attentively.

"… I meant… _What_ are you?" She corrected finally, her voice faltering slightly though her gaze remained direct.

"So you're feeling it too, then?" He mumbled, looking a bit reproachful. He sighed.

"There was a time when I was like you… an angel. I fell from heaven a very long time ago, though." He said, refusing to look at her. When he finally looked up, he realized the small girl was crawling over to him from the other side of the bed, and although her eyes looked flat, they seemed to speak a thousand words all at once. A moment later, she was staring at him from an impossibly close proximity, her sweet scent filling up his nostrils. Her presence sent electricity through his body and he took in every detail of her face as it drew closer.

"I knew it. Somehow I felt it when I saw you… If you're a fallen angel… then you're one of the 'princes', right?" She looked up at him, extending a petite hand out to his face.

"I don't really know what any of this marriage stuff is about… but if you're an angel, I can trust you right? I'll choose you." She said, and though she seemed unable to portray any emotion with her expression, her wide eyes held something he couldn't place. Panicking, his own golden eyes widened as her fingers neared his cheek. He quickly grabbed her arm at the wrist with with his gloved hand in one abrupt motion.

"I'm so sorry Mayu, but I'm not the solution to your problems," he smiled sadly as he spoke to her. "My touch will taint you just as much as the others. And I am not a prince, dear… I only struck a deal with Kaito to come along in secret. I wanted to help where I could. I wanted to meet you." He explained, unable to look her in the eye. He stood and placed some much needed distance between them. This girl was so young… he couldn't take advantage of her naiveté. He turned his back to her and approached the window. Mayu stared at his back, getting to her feet as well. She could feel such a sadness emanating from him that it prickled her heart. She had so many questions.

"I think it's best if you head back to your room before Kaito wakes up… dinner will be soon and you'll have to dress up a little. They'll find it disrespectful if you don't." Yuma said, running a hand through his pastel pink hair. He then explained to her how to get back to her room, and without another word, Mayu took her leave. As he watched her go, Yuma felt a single, hot tear slide down his cheek. He had never felt more bitter.

"I'm sorry, Mayu."

* * *

Mayu stared at her reflection, a strange fascination overcoming her. She watched as the young girl in the mirror blinked and stared blankly back at her, her pink lips laid in a flat line and her golden eyes brimming with something unfamiliar.

"This is me. This is what I look like." She said slowly, pronouncing each syllable with the utmost of care. She found it strange how her lips moved so in synch with her thoughts. Shaking her head rapidly, Mayu reminded herself that there was a task at hand. Yuma had told her she needed to get ready for dinner. But, her thoughts began to drift again when the tall pink haired male she had met earlier filled her mind.

"I met another angel." She said, with a sudden excitement coming over her. She wondered why the face in the mirror didn't bother smiling, though. That's what it was supposed to do, right? But this fleeting emotion was quickly replaced by her usual sense of calm.

"No… I met a _fallen_ angel." She reminded herself sternly. That meant he was like the others, right? He would hurt her. But, there was certainly something undeniably different about him… More importantly though, how could he even _be _in the first place? She quickly went over the history her books had taught her.

Several hundred years ago the then ruling king of hell had ordered "The Purge", which was the torturing and ultimately killing of the demons who were not decendants of the original fallen, or demons spawned from the malicious human souls that wandered hell. It was thought that these fallen were risks whom might align themselves with the nephilim, who had begun to rise in power at the time. So had Yuma somehow escaped "The Purge"? She certainly had a lot of questions to ask him, but she supposed that would have to wait until later.

Sighing, she turned her attention to her pale hair — Yuma had told her she needed to dress up for this dinner, and that was why she had entered her bathroom in the first place. The braid was looking a bit scruffy at this point, and the flowers that had been pinned to her head were now askew. She quickly removed the flowers and took down the braid. She was left with a curly rainbow mess, so she located a brush in one of the drawers and set to work. Brushing her hair had often been a rather soothing activity for Mayu before she had come to hell, and she couldn't help humming a little as she tamed the beast. Finished, she looked herself over in the mirror. It certainly looked better… but it seemed a little plain, she decided. What else could she do? She had little to no experience with styling hair, as she had never needed such things before. She began rifling through the drawers for some pins or something, but instead she found two white hair ties.

"Hmm…" She mumbled to herself before she got started. It took her about fifteen minutes of struggling, but finally she ended up with two, long wavy twin tails that seemed to go nicely with her straight cut bangs and fluffy fringe. Satisfied at last, she stared placidly at the girl in the mirror. A sudden curiosity flickering in her mind, she tugged the corners of her lips upward, trying to imitate the smile that Yuma had given her earlier. It seemed strange on her, like it didn't match her eyes very well. But somehow… she felt encouraged. Her eyes then wandered down to the rip in her dress that was left from Kaito's letter opener.

"Well… something needs to be done about that." She muttered before exiting the bathroom and heading to her wardrobe. Throwing the doors open, she found a numerous amount of various white dresses stuffed into the elaborate wardrobe. She pulled out a ruffly white dress that reached her knees and had a very full skirt. She quickly changed and added a bow to her hair before taking her leave, albeit a bit apprehensively. Yuma had told her to head to the dining hall as soon as she was ready, and that the others would be arriving soon.

After a few minutes travel time, she was standing before one of the side doors that led to the dining hall, which thankfully she had noted on her way to her room when Kaito had first led her around. As she placed her palm on the golden door handle, Mayu became aware of two distinct voices coming from within. She could be assured that both were decidedly male and completely unfamiliar to her but could not make out what the muffled voices meant to say. Not allowing herself to hesitate, she opened up the door and slowly walked inside.

The room was grandiose to be sure; murals were sprawled across the walls and ceiling, depicting stories of brutality that Mayu had never heard of. The table was extremely long and various wooden plant and animal shapes protruded from the massive legs. The only light came from four dinner candles arranged at either end of the table, their flickering light flitting about the room and stabbing at the shadows. The wood floor creaked beneath her feet as she shifted her weight and allowed the heavy door to swing shut behind her. There were two men seated in the middle of the table, neither of which she recognized. The shorter one, who sat on the left, had messy teal hair and matching eyes that seemed to shimmer in the dim room. He grinned when he saw Mayu, tightening his grip around the neck of the beat up teddy bear in his lap. It soon became clear to Mayu that both the voices she had heard belonged to this man, as he kept whispering to the ratty bear, then using a different voice to make the toy's response. Beside him sat a rather bored looking man with dark pink hair and thin, gold rimmed glasses perched on his nose. He only bothered to glance at her before motioning to the seat across from his companion. Mayu didn't have much choice at that point, so she took the seat and carefully arranged her dress, eyeing the pair wearily. What she felt was more apprehension than fear.

"Wow! Isn't she much smaller than we imagined?" The teal haired man questioned.

"Indeed… but don't you think she's wondering who we are?" Came the other man's reply, his voice harsh. The shorter man pouted, but his smile soon returned as he turned back to Mayu, who was watching the two rather impassively.

"My name is Hatsune Mikuo, this guy is Megurine Luki, and this," At this point he sat the bear down on the table, "is Miku!"

Mayu was very confused by this bear — it didn't appear to be alive, so why was he carrying it around? And besides that, it was falling apart. However, Mayu had no time to question the pair as the door soon swung open to reveal Kagamine Len, his blue eyes flashing as he shot her a smirk. Without a word he sat down in his chair and leaned back, though he kept glancing over at her. Thinking about it, she realized that she only knew the blonde's last name from the weird dream she had had earlier — so was it even right? While Mayu fretted over her thoughts, the door once again swung open, but this time with considerably more force. Kaito stomped into room, the candles flickering nervously in his presence. He glared at the back of Len's head, rubbing a red place on his pale forehead.

"Kagamine! Don't think you're getting away with tripping me down the stairs, bastard!" Kaito growled, his voice low and threatening as he slid into the other open seat beside Mayu.

"My! Aren't you two lively tonight?" Mikuo commented, smiling wildly at his company.

"I didn't do a damn thing. He's just a klutz." Len commented smugly, though his expression was at odds with his words.

"Regardless, we have yet to have a peaceful dinner since we arrived, and I think it's high time." Luki spoke up, glaring profusely at the two troublemakers. For a while, a tense silence fell upon the group, with Len and Kaito exchanging glares while Mikuo and Luki seemed more interested in eyeing Mayu or one another. Just the presence of so many demons made Mayu nauseous, her bones thrumming with an odd, unsettling sensation. She could feel her hands shaking as the clock on the far wall struck the hour, an ominous chiming echoing throughout the mansion. Almost instantly, all heads turned upwards, grins plastered to their faces. Mayu followed their gazes and noticed a thin line running through the mural on the ceiling, as though there were an opening hidden there. Mayu startled slightly as the ceiling suddenly swung inwards and a large, heavy and very smelly bag came falling down upon the table with an audible thud. Mayu stared at the large, oblong bag, her brows furrowed almost imperceptibly. Was this… dinner?

Kaito turned his attention towards Mayu, a wild grin covering his face.

"Mayu, why don't you do the honors?" He suggested, eliciting a smirk from Len.

"Yeah, go ahead, Mayu." Len concurred, and Luki seemed quite amused that the two had found something to agree on. Mikuo chuckled lightly.

"They're really mean, aren't they Miku?" He said, his face teeming with excitement as he wiggled the bear's head in agreement to his statement. Though she felt a sinking feeling in her stomach, Mayu refused to hesitate and remained stoic. She got up from her chair and reached her hands to the center of the table. She moved aside the flaps of the bag, and upon exposing the contents was met with an overwhelming stench that caused her eyes to water. Mayu's eyes widened slightly as she stared into the rotting face of what she could only assume was a human woman. Her skin was yellow and bruised, her face gaunt and her unseeing eyes stuck into a look of absolute horror. Without a word, Mayu quickly sat down and averted her eyes as the feeding began. They wasted no time in removing the remains of the bag and tearing the poor woman limb from limb. For the next half hour, the four princes gorged themselves, ripping shredding and ultimately consuming flesh, blood, and even bone. It was a flurry of red carnage, and Mayu simply stared down vacantly at her lap, wincing slightly every time a drop of blood landed on her. She was thankful, at least, that the woman was already dead when this all began.

Mayu refused to look up from her lap, a cold terror gripping at her heart. Thoughts and worries came crashing down on her as the noxious sounds filled the air. Was she even going to be able to _survive_ these demons? Somehow though, as she sat there avoiding the problem, a strange and unfamiliar feeling settled in. And just like that, something inside the angel snapped; she suddenly stood, her eyes stumbling around the room.

The four demons were drenched in crimson, the woman had been reduced to a few remaining piles of red, sticky entrails and clumps of fatty tissue. Mikuo held one of the woman's eyes, toying with it idly, while Len looked as though he was fighting sleep, a yawn escaping him as blood dripped from his mouth. Kaito was licking his red fingers, while Luki dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. Slowly, all eyes turned to Mayu as she stood. Strangely her mouth was set sternly and her eyes reflected unrelenting determination.

"I… believe…!" She began, her voice quiet but containing a certain forcefulness. She was met with rather confused looks from her companions.

"I believe… that there has to be good here. In all of you, somewhere! I wouldn't be here otherwise. I will find it. I will find the right path." She stated, her voice growing in strength as she continued. So many thoughts were flying through her mind all at once that she had a hard time finding the right words, her feelings overflowing.

"Therefore… I'm postponing my decision until I've figured out exactly what's going on, and that this is the correct path that Mother Matilde intended for me." Mayu concluded. All four princes showed varying degrees of shock on their pale faces, words escaping them as they watched her.

"So then, if you'll excuse me." She added, giving a curt bow of her head before she turned and left the room. Her decision was made, but the princes, of course, _had no intention of honoring it._


	4. I Miss You

_(Author's Notes)_

_Time for chapter four! This chapter focuses on MikuoxMayu, a pairing that seems to be kinda popular haha. I've actually been having a lot of fun drawing the characters from this story lately. *_*_

_The song mentioned is a vocaloid song called "I Miss You", and I highly recommend Rin's cover!_

_Anyways, I hope you enjoy! The next chapter will focus on Yuma._

* * *

Mayu sighed, watching idly as the bubbles responded to her breath and slid across the water's surface. The warm depths of her new found claw-foot tub relaxed her tense body, and she almost began to think that the horrid feast she had witnessed earlier that evening was nothing but a dream. However, she knew better, and what she had seen could not be so easily forgotten.

After a few more minutes lost in thought, Mayu got to her feet and stepped out of the tub. Water fell from her body in glistening droplets and pooled on the floor, while her hands found a fluffy towel that she used to dry herself off. She quickly threw on a ruffly night top and bloomers she had obtained in her closet earlier, and then brushed through her pale, fluffy hair before exiting the bathroom. The now familiar room was blanketed in thick, inky darkness that Mayu's eyes could do little to penetrate. It was by memory alone that she found her way to the bed and neatly inserted herself beneath the covers. Settling in, Mayu pulled the comforter up to her chin and snuggled into the pillows. Just as she shut her eyes, Mayu was startled when the bed suddenly shifted, as if someone was lying on the other side. And was that… a breath she felt on the nape of her neck?

Mayu stared blankly at the wall in front of her for a few moments before the gears in her mind clicked into place and she willed herself to roll over and view her uninvited guest. She locked gazes with a pair of stormy, navy blue eyes, and Mayu immediately knew she was in trouble. Still, she refused to feel uneasy in Kaito's presence. Instead, she simply stared quietly at him in the dimness. Mayu could see his pale skin, handsome features, and his blue hair that cascaded messily over her white pillow. But the strange thing was his expression; he looked… vexed or concerned, as though something was gnawing at his mind. After a few moments of tense silence, Kaito's dark brows furrowed.

"Don't just stare at me like that…" He mumbled grumpily, suddenly averting his gaze.

"Why are you here?" Mayu finally asked, her voice frank. At this point, she had no patience for games. She was eager to sleep and see if Gumi would return to her in her slumber. Kaito murmured a curse under his breath as he rolled over onto his back. He let out a heavy sigh before speaking.

"I wanted to ask you something."

"Yes?"

"Were you serious about what you said earlier?"

"Huh? About what?"

"When you said you believed there was good in all of us… that good would prevail?" He clarified. Mayu didn't hesitate in the slightest — she didn't need to. She quickly nodded.

"Of course. Why would someone say something they didn't mean?" She said, the very thought confusing to her. For a while, Kaito stared into her golden eyes, searching them for something. Finding nothing but purity, he smirked.

"You're really dumb. I wonder how long it'll be until you break?" He mused, but to his dismay Mayu's blank expression remained unchanged. He then rolled over, his back facing her, and closed his eyes.

"… You're not leaving?" Mayu asked, an eyebrow arched.

"Shut up! Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" Kaito mumbled into his pillow. Mayu sighed and sunk back into her own pillow. She found herself unable to sleep for the rest of the night, and felt quite sick to her stomach when Kaito finally got up that morning and left without a word. His presence alone made her skin crawl.

* * *

Several days passed without much incident. However, the angel found that after Kaito stayed in her room for that night, she was unable to sleep even a wink. Sleep had always been something that was easy but unnecessary for her. Now that she wanted to meet Gumi in her dreams, though, she found its absence distressing.

During the day, Mayu often went to the library and borrowed books from Len, who surprisingly kept up his end of the bargain and allowed her to borrow anything she liked. Len wasn't always in the library, and when he was, Mayu did her best to avoid him. She also made an appearance at dinner every night, but hurriedly excused herself as the feasting began. She couldn't help but feel that the way the boys looked at her was somehow… _different_ after that first dinner. Hopefully it was a positive change?

On a certain evening about a week into her stay in hell, Mayu was all primped and on her way to the dining hall downstairs. The route she took always passed by the music room she had discovered earlier in her stay. She often enjoyed popping in there and toying with some of the instruments on her way to dinner, as music seemed like a very appealing and natural idea to her. At this particular time, though, something was different. As she approached, a sound wafted towards her ears from behind the closed door. A gentle melody was being played beautifully on the piano, and above that rose the sound of a male voice. His singing was light and gentle, but somehow sad at the same time. The lyrics seemed to be referring to missing someone very deeply, and Mayu felt melancholic just listening to the pretty song. She waited by the door, her ear pressed against the panel as she eagerly listened. When the song had finished, Mayu tore herself from the door and hurried down the staircase, not wanting to meet up with anymore demons than she had to.

Dinner went as usual. Kaito and Len argued incessantly, and Mikuo egged them on wholeheartedly. Once the corpse was on the table, though, Mayu hurriedly bowed and excused herself. As usual, no one tried to stop her.

On her way back to her room, Mayu decided to stop by the now certainly empty music room. There was a strange attraction she felt towards music, and she wondered if maybe she could try singing the song she had heard earlier. Mayu was quite happy to see that the lyrics, which had been scribbled down on a napkin, were still lying on a black music stand in the room. She took the napkin up in her hands and carefully looked over the lyrics, remembering how the song had sounded. Almost nervously, she cleared her throat and began to sing. Her voice was high and sweet, but somehow seemed to carry the emotion of the song well. She tried to keep her voice quiet as to not draw any attention to herself, and as she sang, Mayu began to realize that this was her first time to truly experience joy. She could feel a small smile crawling over her lips, and somehow she knew it wasn't the broken, unnatural one she had attempted before.

So engrossed in her singing was the girl, that she failed to notice when the door was carefully opened and Mikuo walked in, brushing a strand of his teal hair from his face. He had come to retrieve his forgotten lyrics, but instead he had stumbled onto quite the scene.

Mayu stood at the opposite end of the room, one small hand clutching the lyrics and the other settled over her heart. A gentle smile lit up her face and the lyrics fell from her lips like they were her own. Her beautiful voice sent tremors of pain through his body, but the opportunity was well worth it, he thought. She didn't even notice as he walked up beside her and added his voice to her own. They harmonized spectacularly and each voice complimented the other.

"Yubi no saki ni kobore ochita shinju no iro nara

Itai hodo no omoi de hora

Akaku irodzuiteru

Kimi no tame ni dore dake namida nagashite mite mo

Kono iro no imi ni kidzuite wa kurenai no

Samayou yubi wa

Yukiba wo nakushite furuete

Mitsuke nakereba

Kimi mo erabanakatta no?

Koe wo ubaeba

Tomaru koto mo dekiru kedo

Akasu koto sae not allowed

Soba ni ite want you please

Te wo totte take me there

Hitasura ni I miss you

Kono kyori ga modokashikute

Kimi dake ni want you please

Ima sugu ni take me there

Konna ni mo I miss you

Setsunasa ga tomaranakute

Koyoi tsuki ga kirei ni kagayaita toshite mo

Kimi no tame ni utau koto mo dekinai nante

Hito no nami ni nagasare tadoritsuita basho wa

Umi no soko yori mo tsumetakute kogoe sou

Hohoemu saki wa

Itsushika houkou wo kaete

Shirazu ni ireba

Nani mo kawaranakatta no?

Tadashii nante

Dare mo ienai hazu dakara

Mada ugokezu ni I'm still here

Soba ni ite want you please

Te wo totte take me there

Hitasura ni I miss you

Kono kyori ga modokashikute

Kimi dake ni want you please

Ima sugu ni take me there

Konna ni mo I miss you

Setsunasa ga tomaranakute

Awa ni natte tokete iku

Hakanai yakusoku ni shibararete

Dochiraka ga kienakereba

Kotoba ni sura dekinai no?

Soba ni ite want you please

Te wo totte take me there

Hitasura ni I miss you

Kono kyori ga modokashikute

Kimi dake ni want you please

Ima sugu ni take me there

Konna ni mo I miss you

Setsunasa ga tomaranakute

Soba ni ite want you please

Te wo totte take me there

Hitasura ni I miss you

Kono kyori ga modokashikute

Kimi dake ni want you please

Ima sugu ni take me there

Konna ni mo I miss you

Setsunasa ga tomaranakute"

Once the last note had been sung, Mayu set the lyrics back on the music stand and found herself staring down at her feet. She felt her smile fading back into her usual listless stare.

"You sing very well!" Mikuo's voice startled Mayu out of her reverie, and she looked up at him. He was smirking like usual, but strangely there was blood dripping from his nose and the edges of his eyes.

"Did I do that…?" She asked dazedly, thinking back to when she had used her voice against Kaito. She had never thought about her singing being powerful, though. Mikuo nodded.

"Your voice is your weapon, obviously." Mayu seemed to wake from a dream at his words and suddenly looked concerned. It was like a switch had been flipped in her head and she was able to _feel_… if just a little. Mayu wordlessly took off her white glove and began wiping the blood off of a rather surprised looking Mikuo, who simply watched her curiously. She was careful not to let their skin touch as she moved the fabric over his pale face.

"Are you injured?" She asked finally, after having disposed of her now bloody glove. Mikuo laughed, grinning wildly at her.

"You're not strong enough to do much damage, silly!" He said, settling down on the old sofa behind them. He motioned her to the seat beside him, but Mayu hesitated. She felt both mentally and physically exhausted at this point, and she really didn't want to be toyed with. But at his insistence, she took a seat, placing as much space between them as she could. For a while, a smiling Mikuo simply watched the girl as she stared down blankly at the hands clasped in her lap.

"Luki says something is bothering you. Something different from the obvious." Mikuo broke the silence at last.

"Oh…" She responded with quietly, thinking carefully about his words.

"Well? What is it? Luki's never wrong, and I'm particularly bored." Mikuo said. An idea then seemed to pop into his head, and he leaned into Mayu's face.

"Are you breaking already? How exciting!" He yelped giddily, his grin revealing a row of sharp teeth. Mayu sighed and closed her eyes.

"I won't give you that satisfaction. Actually… I can't sleep. That is what's bothering me the most."

"Eh? But I thought angels didn't need sleep?"

"We don't… But we _can_. And there's someone I want to meet in my dreams." She explained, and Mikuo looked thoughtful.

"Well, why don't you try sleeping in here? The music room is quite comforting, I've found. I'll be in here for a while, so I won't let anyone in." He almost sang, motioning her eagerly to lean back on the couch. Mayu looked dubious, but did as he suggested anyways and closed her eyes. She really needed to sleep, and this was her best shot. Mikuo began to hum a soothing tune, and Mayu somehow found herself relaxing. In a matter of minutes, Mikuo had the angel snoozing soundly.

The demon watched her closely, examining her every feature. She really was beautiful, he decided. He was certainly interested in seeing how this would all play out. Who would she choose in the end?

Mikuo was abruptly dragged from his thoughts by a sliding sound and a sudden pressure on his shoulder. He couldn't help but blush a bit as the sleeping girl leaned on his shoulder. He quickly averted his gaze and began to hum again. It had been a long time since he had been this close to someone, he thought. His grip on the bear in his lap tightened as his thoughts turned to his sister… _his precious Miku._

* * *

When Mayu next opened her eyes, she was staring up the night sky with stars twinkling like diamonds embedded into a deep blue frame. She was lying in a grassy field, and to her relief the night was clear and no rain was in sight. Long blades of green grass tickled her ankles as she got to her feet and looked around. Almost immediately, she spotted Gumi's tall figure a few feet ahead of her. Mayu cautiously approached the familiar person, her eyes trained on the back of Gumi's green head.

"So you _are_ more than a dream, aren't you?" Mayu mused as she came to stand beside the other figure. Gumi greeted her with a charming smile.

"Ah, it's nice to finally see you again!" Gumi said, gazing down at the blonde. Mayu looked as though she wanted to question Gumi, but the said person only raised a finger to Mayu's lips.

"You're slumber is very light tonight. We don't have much time, so…" Gumi explained, and Mayu sighed with a sense of resignation. She thought very carefully before she spoke. She knew she had yet to tell Gumi about Yuma, but something told her that wasn't the best idea. Mayu didn't want to betray him, and he certainly seemed to be keeping his presence a secret from the others.

"Very well. I've met two more demons." Mayu said at last.

"The final two? Well, that's good I suppose. So after you woke up from Len's kiss?" Gumi pressed, and Mayu simply lied, which certainly didn't sit right with the girl in the slightest. Still, her poker face was more than convincing.

She told Gumi that she had awakened in her room with a note telling her to come to dinner on her bedside table. After that she explained about the dinner and her resolution.

"You're a very strong angel, Mayu." Gumi commented, looking wistfully up at the shining stars that towered over the pair. Mayu continued with her story about her duet with Mikuo and how he had helped her to sleep. Gumi looked concerned.

"Well, Luki Megurine and Mikuo Hatsune are two of the top dogs in hell these days. They're very powerful demons, and I'm sure political pressure caused them to seek your hand. But be warned, Mayu, despite his being nice to you, Mikuo is extremely dangerous just like the others. He and Luki were not born demons, after all, and they're excellent at manipulation." Gumi commented gravely, giving Mayu a stern look. The angel looked confused.

"Then what were they?"

"Humans." Gumi's words only further perplexed her. The only mentions her books had made of humans were that they worked to serve the nephilim. How would a human become a demon? Mayu voiced her concern and Gumi smiled sadly, looking suddenly distant.

"Well, when a human dies, if there is enough hatred in their hearts, they can become a demon. The more negative their emotions, the stronger they will be. It's very sad, really."

"What happened to those two…?" Mayu wondered aloud, suddenly gripped by an emotion that made her feel very uneasy and… sad?

"As the story goes, a very long time ago, Mikuo and Luki worked together in their King's palace, along with Mikuo's sister, Miku, as servants. Apparently, Miku got greedy one day and placed some stolen jewelry from her mistress in the boys' room, blaming her brother and Luki for the thievery to gain good standing with her mistress. Her betrayal was enough to turn the two into demons after their hangings."

"That's… horrible." Mayu commented with a sudden shiver.

"Oh, Mayu look, there's a shooting star! Our time is almost up, so make a wish!" Gumi said excitedly, interrupting Mayu's thoughts. She gestured wildly at the sky, and Mayu could see a white flash streaming across the night above them. She closed her eyes and a whisper formed on her lips.

_"I wish that I could erase all this sadness…"_

* * *

Luki's long fingers flitted across the keyboard with a nimbleness that elicited an intense and melodious rhythm from the instrument he was seated at. He focused on precision with his piano playing — and precision is what he received. Every note was perfectly timed and every movement an exact science that he treasured dearly. The room was filled with a strange medley of beautiful, yet mysterious sounds. Sadly, though, his vocalist was missing, so the piano music felt somehow incomplete to the pink haired man. Still, he played.

He played, that is, until a familiar feeling began to prickle within his chest. He had begun to become accustomed to it over the last few days since she had arrived, but still he found it unsettling. Luki thrived off of control, but whenever she was near he could feel it slowly slipping away. The desire to taint her, to control her, to torment her, was undeniable and he knew that every one of his brethren felt it. It was in their nature when faced with something so… _pure_.

Luki stopped his playing and turned his eyes towards the door, where sure enough he could see Mayu's round face peeking in through the aperture, her long locks cascading over her shoulder.

"Come in." Luki said, his impatience showing in his tone. Mayu obeyed and walked into the room quietly. She clasped her hands behind her back and stood beside the old piano. Most of the boys in the house would have said that Mayu seemed like her usual emotionless self, but Luki could see a difference in her more extreme than he had noted before. Her lips were ever so slightly turned down, and her golden gaze seemed unable to keep his own. He honestly didn't care about whatever her problem was, but he figured he'd better get this over with. She wasn't the type to give up easily.

"What do you want?"

"I think I'm looking for Mikuo?"

"You think?"

"Well, I am, but…"

"Regardless, he isn't here. Mikuo is out of the manor this morning."

"Oh…" Mayu mumbled, staring blankly at the floor. Luki sighed — now she had him curious. What did she want with Mikuo? The teal-haired demon had told him about what had happened yesterday in the music room… so had Mayu grown a fondness for him? Mikuo wouldn't like that, surely. After all, the two of them had come with no intention of either of them marrying Mayu. They were only here for political reasons. But, that didn't explain why she seemed so disturbed, now did it?

While Luki was lost in his thoughts, Mayu began approaching him. He failed to notice until she was only inches from him, and she had taken up his hands in her own. Her face seemed pained as their skin touched, but she looked at him earnestly. Luki watched her with a raised brow, though internally he was panicking.

"I'm so sorry for what you and Mikuo went through… It must have been horrible, and I wish that somehow I could change it or make it right…!" She said, her cool breath ghosting across his face. There was an immense sense of sadness swimming around in her eyes, and Luki simply couldn't believe what he was hearing at all. This girl was so upset about something that happened to someone she barely knew _hundreds_ of years ago? He remembered the angels, and they certainly weren't like that. Luki could only stare at her in dumb shock, his skin prickling. Then, suddenly, she withdrew and plopped down on the couch over by the window.

"I'll wait for Mikuo here." She stated, her listlessness returning. Luki ran a hand through his pink hair and averted his eyes from the angel in an attempt to calm himself down. She stayed quiet and simply stared straight ahead, her gaze empty and inattentive. Luki tried several times to ignore her and continue playing, but each time he found his eyes wandering over to her face, and he was unable to properly move his fingers. After about fifteen minutes of this silent struggle, Luki finally spoke.

"How do you know about what happened to Mikuo and I anyways?" He asked, now returning her gaze.

"My dreams." Mayu said, and Luki exhaled heavily.

"So even _they're_ interested in you, huh?" Luki mumbled under his breath, relieved that Mayu did not seem to hear him.

"Luki… Can you tell me more about what happened?" Mayu brought up almost hesitantly. She wanted to understand them as much as she possibly could. This whole situation made her feel incredibly helpless, but maybe if she made an effort she could turn things around. Luki stayed quiet for the next few minutes and watched her closely, trying to decipher her mind.

"Mmmm… Well you know about Miku?" He asked finally. He wasn't entirely sure why he was telling her anything at all, but some hidden feeling pushed him forward. She nodded, only once.

"Mikuo and I were very close to her. We all grew up together in an orphanage, and as kids, Mikuo and I always competed for her attention. I always felt that he had the upper hand being her little brother, and after a while I, realized I would never be as close to her as he was. But, even so, we were all really good friends and stuck together even into adulthood. We all got jobs as servants in the castle… and I think that's where things went wrong. Miku always acted like her normal cheerful self, but we found out later she was far from content. Seeing the ladies she served in their elaborate dresses and fine jewels while she wore rags must have embittered her. Eventually, that jealousy consumed her."

"And that's when she framed you two?"

"Yes. She could have chosen any of the servants… but she chose us. I think she wanted to hurt us for being happy with our lives, you know? She stole her mistress's jewels and stashed them under our beds while we were sleeping. For turning us in and returning the jewels, she earned the Queen's favor and we were executed the next day. As bad as it was for me… I feel like Mikuo had it much worse. Miku was his everything in life. We would have gone back to earth for our revenge, but by the time we had become full fledged demons and were able to return topside, well, everyone was already dead." When Luki finished he turned his gaze to the window and watched the fire burn outside. Mayu's eyes were downcast, and her hands were clinched around her knees. Her brows had knitted together as though she simply couldn't understand something. How could something so horrible happen like that? Why would someone betray those closest to them in such a deliberate way? None of it made sense to Mayu.

"That's—"

"Luki! Figured I'd find you here!" Mikuo interrupted as he waltzed into the room, teddy bear tucked under his arm and a cheeky smile on his face.

"Oh… Mayu's here too—!" Mikuo himself was interrupted as Mayu launched herself off the couch and wrapped her arms around his torso. She could feel the heat from his skin singeing through her clothes, but the pain didn't matter to her at the moment. For a little while, they stood there, and Luki watched them curiously from behind his glasses. Mikuo was in shock and stood straight as a board, while Mayu buried her face into his chest.

"I'm so sorry… that betrayal must have been so painful. I can't even imagine." She mumbled, but Mikuo caught every word. Then, she released him and stared straight into his wide eyes.

"If only there was something I could do to change things… If you'll excuse me." She said after a pause, and with that she left the room, leaving two completely shocked demons behind.

* * *

It was several days later that Mikuo found himself sprawled out on his king size bed, a threaded sewing needle in one hand and the unfinished body of a rabbit plush in the other.

"Yo." Luki greeted as he entered the bedroom that the pair shared and sat on one of the arm chairs positioned between their beds. His fingers wondered over the elaborate dragon head that had been carved into the arm rest as he watched his friend at work.

"It's been a while since you made a new one. What's the occasion?" Luki mused. Mikuo didn't bother looking up from his work.

"This guy is for Mayu." He said, wincing a bit as the needle pricked his finger. Luki arched an eyebrow. Mikuo had been spending a good amount of time in the music room the last few days, and Luki was rather curious. Maybe Mayu had been with him? However, he deemed it best not to pry so he kept quiet. After a few minutes of silence though, Mikuo suddenly looked up from his sewing and stared at Luki, his eyes thoughtful.

"Luki. I think I've fallen for her." He mouthed slowly, and his words brought a smug smile to his friend's face.

"Oh really, this from the guy who bitched the whole way here about how stupid this whole situation was?"

"… Yeah." Mikuo admitted, but he couldn't help the grin that came over his features.

"Luki, just think about it! Breaking her will be so much fun! And once I win this stupid thing, I can have her all to myself." He chirped, each of his sharpened teeth glittering menacingly in the candlelight.

"So you're going to start seriously pursuing her hand?" Luki asked curiously, eyeing his friend. Mikuo stared down at the nearly finished rabbit in his left hand, the needle dangling from his right.

"I think so."


	5. Bonus Scene!

_(Author's Notes)_

_I apologize that it's been so long since the last update! I've been quite busy with school lately. Unfortunately, the newest chapter is still being written, but this scene sort of popped into my head early one morning, and I managed to jot it down at the airport. It's a rather silly scene and doesn't have much to do with the plot, but I hope you will enjoy it!_

_I feel I'm not very good at writing more comic scenes like this, but hopefully it turned out alright. ^^'_

* * *

It was dinner time as usual at the hellish old mansion in the bowls of darkness, but the occupants of the present table were far less than satisfied. It had been about twenty minutes of silence, and there had yet to be so much as a morsel of human flesh set out on the table. The five had been warned that the "catch of the day" had been _difficult_ to acquire, and would take some time to _prepare. _However, that did little to alleviate the discontented mood settled over the company.

Mayu sat in her usual way, posture delicate but her head inclined, and her golden eyes trained on her lap. Kaito had his feet propped up on the dinner table, and was currently trading sour looks with Len, who sat slumped in his chair with his arms crossed beneath his chest. Mikuo had happily claimed the chair beside Mayu, and though his face was facing forward, his teal eyes were angled towards her. A dangerous smile dangled from his lips. Luki was seated across from his friend, and currently looked very annoyed as he glared at Kaito's feet.

"So, how are you tonight, Mayu?" Mikuo suddenly questioned deviously. He was clearly looking to stir up trouble with the others. Before Mayu could even respond, though, Mikuo's words put him on Kaito's radar, and all eyes were drawn to the teal haired demon.

"Ah… fine." Mayu responded with after a pause, not bothering to look up.

"What's your problem, _imp_? You talking to my property?" Kaito nearly yelled, crossing his own arms. If looks could kill, Mikuo would have fallen flat on the floor that very moment. Len smirked, placing a hand beneath his chin.

"Well, _your property_ has been spending an awful lot of time in the library with _me_." He commented with a chuckle.

"You know, come to think of it, our _precious_ angel has been spending _quite _a lot of time in the music room with me as well, Kaito. She _truly _has the voice of an angel! But you wouldn't know that, hmm?" Mikuo mused with an innocent smile. Mayu was beginning to feel rather uncomfortable by their words, and she shifted slightly.

"I've spent plenty of time with her, too!" Kaito argued, looking positively outraged.

"And I'm sure she hates you for that very reason." Luki chimed in monotonously. Len and Mikuo immediately erupted into a fit of snickering. Kaito growled ominously, a warning to all present. However, no one was particularly inclined to heed such things from him.

"It's kind of… _interesting_… how you've spent _so much _time with her, and yet you haven't kissed her? I mean _I _have, but…" Len further teased.

"Shaddup you stupid braggart! I've come pretty close anyways…" Kaito mumbled moodily.

"Oooh, impressive, Len!" Mikuo shouted, full of fake awe.

"So, how _close_ have you come, eh, Kaito?" Luki asked, his voice full of poison as he adjusted his glasses. Kaito thought for a moment and then triumphantly slammed a hand down on the table, startling Mayu slightly.

"I've _slept _with her!" He shouted with a grin as his gaze shifted from person to person, daring anyone to challenge him. Surely no one could top that? There was a stunned silence for a moment as Len and Mikuo processed his words. Len merely blinked confusedly, but Mikuo on the other hand had his lips turned up into a snarl.

"That _can't _be true." He stated darkly, his normally jovial eyes narrowed into thin slits. It was the first time that any of them, aside from Luki, had ever seen Mikuo angry, and they were all quite surprised by his rage. All eyes then turned to Mayu, and the poor girl looked up at the men like a deer caught in the headlights.

"… It's true—" She began, but Mikuo interrupted her by abruptly tossing his chair aside and grasping the collar of the smirking Kaito's shirt. He looked as though he was about to throw a tantrum, but Mayu hurriedly continued.

"… He fell asleep in my bed one night." She finished, her face blank. She truly understood nothing of what was going on — why was everyone so upset by the fact that he had slept next to her? Why did they care at all? The conflict made her feel horrible inside, and yet she couldn't quite place why. She wanted nothing more than for everyone to get along, so she thought quickly and added to her previous statement.

"But I actually didn't fall asleep, so…!" She explained, looking at Mikuo's back. The teal haired demon's lips trembled and his his eyebrow twitched once before he burst out laughing maniacally, and Luki and Len soon followed suit. As they continued laughing like mad hyenas, Mayu looked from person to person very unsurely. When her eyes fell on Kaito amidst the chaos, she felt a small twinge in her stomach. He was glaring down at the floor, with his lips set into a fierce frown. His fingers twitched oddly as though tense.

Suddenly, she stood up from her chair, removed herself from the table, and pushed her all too ornate seat back in. With her face set, by no particular purpose on her part, into her usual emotionless gaze, she stared at the wall across from her. The laughter slowly died out.

"I've had quite enough. I don't understand any of this squabbling. You boys need to learn to get along." She stated, her tone flat as ever. She then walked to the door, but paused briefly.

"And please do not resort to bullying Kaito. Or anyone for that matter. It is very unsightly." She added quietly, before excusing herself and making her leave. The rest of the meal, for the boys, was passed in a rather thoughtful silence on all parts.


End file.
